B&M in Va

[Vertical]

Hi!

First of all, this site is awesome

I guess this would be my introduction

. My name is Daniel and I''m an alcoholic....err, I''m looking for an engagement ring. I''m very much in love with my girlfriend of 3+ yrs and I''m currently in search of the perfect ring. I''m looking for a 3 stone ring with round cut diamonds. I''ve been lurking around these forums for some time now and recently learned that the certifications found from IGI may not be as accurate as other certifications like GIA or AGSL. With that in mind I have a question...

I visited this site (http://www.thegoldmine.com/next.html) because of a recommendation from a family member. It''s a B&M that seems to have prices that are too good to be true, it makes my budget seem like it can obtain a lot more. The certification they have is IGI and I''m not sure how I feel about buying an IGI cert ring.

As it stands today, these are the qualities I''m looking for in a diamond in order
-cut
-clarity
-carat
-color

Of course they are all important and I want the best for my budget (5-6k)

I appreciate any help you guys can give.

Thanks,

-Daniel

 

[Lorelei]

Welcome Daniel,

Firstly this page explains how the grading labs rank, so this would be useful reading for you.

http://diamonds.pricescope.com/grading.asp

As to your ring, is the 5- 6k budget for the whole ring, and are you hoping for a centre diamond which is considerably larger than the two side stones, or are you wanting three round diamonds of similar size? If you could let us know then we can go from there. Also do you prefer white gold or platinum?

 

[Vertical]

Thanks for the link Lorelei, I reviewed it for a few minutes to get a better idea of the number of certifications available. Should I just spend the money to get the ring appraised by a third party?

I''m looking for the center stone to be at 0.7 ct or greater (preferable) with smaller side stones. I''m not exactly sure of what balance to have between the two. My girlfriend has realtively small hands (ring size around 5.5) so the band should be thin. She would definitely like something simple and elegant. My budget of 5-6k includes the setting, looking for white gold.

Are there any disadvantages with going with 18k white gold (scratch easier?)

Did you get a chance to look at the link? I want to see if that seems like a good option for a budget becuase I plan on looking at what they have in stock if it seems worth it.

Thanks a lot,

Daniel

 

[Vertical]

Bump

Has anyone had any experience from this store?

 

[bgray]

most pricescopers are pretty demanding and as such dont usually settle for less than AGS, GIA and occasionally EDL and HRD. Its not to say there arent some other good buys out there but I would say buyer beware with that certification

 

[Vertical]

I kinda got that feeling from reading around a bit. I''ll be sure to be wary if I do decide to make the purchase.

Are there any disadvantages with going with 18k white gold?

 

[Hudson_Hawk]

The advantages of WG are it''s cheaper than platinum and provides a similar look. It''s also a lot lighter than platinum. That being said, the downsides are that WG rings are plated to get the truly white color. Periodically the ring will need to be replated. How soon/often this needs to be done depends on who''s wearing it. Different people''s chemistry reacts differently with the metal and can speed up the process. I have a white gold ring, and I love it. Platinum is nice, but I thought the rings I tried on were too heavy and I couldn''t stomach the price tag. I have my ring replated every year when I have the prongs checked. It''s pretty cheap, about $20-$30 and it doesn''t take long to do.

 

[bgray]

platinum is the whitest and heaviest metal --few people have skin reactions with it. I would recommend platinum but if you are trying to allocate most of your funds to the stone i would do with a very simple WG setting. you can easily upgrade your setting later if desired--

 

[Vertical]

I think that the benefit of white gold bein cheaper will allow me to really get a good balance of what i want.

What are your opinions on the three stone setting, should the center stone be much larger than the sides? I was thinking about going with a .8ct in the middle with side stones being around 1/3 ct. Do you think that I can net high quality cut diamonds in this size with a total ring budget of under 6k?

Thanks for all of your help guys

 

[jet2ks]

When looking at metals, you might also consider palladium. It will be similar in price and weight to WG, but have many of platinum''s characteristics. There seems to be mixed reactions on palladium--some really like, others don''t.

There are some good threads if you do a search.

 

[Vertical]

Date: 2/10/2009 12:33:09 PM
Author: Vertical
I think that the benefit of white gold bein cheaper will allow me to really get a good balance of what i want.

What are your opinions on the three stone setting, should the center stone be much larger than the sides? I was thinking about going with a .8ct in the middle with side stones being around 1/3 ct. Do you think that I can net high quality cut diamonds in this size with a total ring budget of under 6k?

Thanks for all of your help guys

+1

 

[vespergirl]

If you''re in NoVA, you should go to Mervis Diamond Importers - it''s where I got my ring. They are very fairly priced for a B&M that carries excellent quality stones, and you can definitely find something nice in your budget there. They carry AGS, GIA & EGL stones. Mine is a 2 ct EGL H&A, and it''s beautiful. Because the owner selects all his own diamonds, even his EGL stones are generally very nice and you can definitely get a bigger stone for your budget.

They also have a 100% lifetime trade-up policy, so if you decide you want to upgrade the stone a few years down the road, all you have to pay is the difference for the more expensive stone.